Pets: James and Jaxson

Wednesday

May 26, 2010 at 12:01 AMJun 2, 2010 at 3:49 PM

Jaxson's really high-energy, and he loves coming here. We live in German Village, which doesn't have a fenced-in dog park. He does alright off the leash, but at Schiller Park, you can't trust him too much. He's a bird dog, and he goes after the ducks.

What brought you out to Wheeler Dog Park today?

Jaxson's really high-energy, and he loves coming here. We live in German Village, which doesn't have a fenced-in dog park. He does alright off the leash, but at Schiller Park, you can't trust him too much. He's a bird dog, and he goes after the ducks.

Has he ever caught anything?

He caught a duck when we were hiking this past winter. And last week, he caught a bird in our backyard. Whenever he gets a hold of something, he acts like it's a stuffed animal. He wants to play with it and carry it around in his mouth.

The bird, unfortunately, he did kill - but the duck, I came running over, screaming, and it got away.

Why did you pick a Vizsla?

He's a hypoallergenic breed, and I have dog allergies.

How's training going?

He's getting better. Getting him to listen in an environment like this is probably the hardest thing to do. He can sit and stay and come and lay, but there really can't be much other stimulation going on.

Do you have any "accessories" you're into?

His harness is really great. I think a harness for any dog that's going to pull is nice because it doesn't choke him, and it's a lot easier to control him.

The coolest thing he has is a backpack for hiking, designed for him to carry his own food. We're trying to train him to be able to backpack overnight.